Thursday 26th January 2023

In October 2022, we launched the 2022/23 Leadership Programme, which this year consists of eight nominated enthusiastic students. Read on to learn how they’ve been getting on!

In October 2022, we launched the 2022/23 Leadership Programme, which this year consists of eight nominated enthusiastic students. This programme is designed to advance their skills in the masterclass sessions and put them to the test during their volunteering hours at some of our SSS Events. This year’s cohort have developed learning in areas such as growth mindset, collaborative working and productivity as well as motivation, from both members of the SSS Staff Team but also industry experts from our network including Guy Richardson from Eiger Performance and Ross Simpson, Assistant Director and Head of Sport, The University of Edinburgh.

This January we have just launched for the second semester, meeting in person to discuss high-performance behaviours ahead of the new term and reflect on the success and learnings from semester one. This semester the team head out to some of our SSS Events to solidify their personal development and put some of their newly developed knowledge to practice. SSS Leadership Programme offers individuals an opportunity to develop their skills and has helped some of our graduated Leaders reach positions such as Institution Sports Presidents, Ronan Welch current Strathclyde University Sabbatical Officer was part of the 2021/22 Leadership Course and here is his advice for those who wish to do the programme.

“Taking part in the SSS Leadership Program last year was very useful in developing me as a leader, and the skills I learned throughout the program I now use daily in my role as Sports President at Strathclyde. Particularly Guy Richardsons sessions at the start and end of the program – make the most of those sessions in challenging, and being challenged on your leadership style, the self-reflection you do here will be invaluable! With the weekly mastermind calls, make sure you put the effort in and speak up in them – you’ll get out what you put in. Finally, enjoy it – you’re in a group of highly motivated people who come from a range of institutions, sports, and backgrounds – use this opportunity to network, listen, and learn as much as you can from each other and you’ll come out of the year massively better off for it!”

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Monday 28th March 2022

The latest in this years Reffin’ Brilliant offering looks to grow the number of student referees supporting basketball competitions across the country.

Through a partnership with Basketball Scotland, SSS are pleased to deliver a Level 1 Refereeing course as part of SSS’ sportscotland-funded Reffin’ Brilliant programme.

The volunteer workforce is vital to the sustainability of student sport and this course will help to grow the number of students involved in this side of the game. A refereeing qualification will give students a different perspective of the game they love but can also provide additional income to support the student lifestyle. Progression through the pathway can open up opportunities to referee across Scotland and the world.

Level 1 Refereeing Course

The Level 1 Referee course is designed for candidates who have a basic understanding of playing or refereeing basketball. Candidates will learn more detailed rules of the game, signals, mechanics, communication and managing a game.

This course is made up of a 3-hour online workshop, followed by a 5 hour practical session. Students signing up for the course are committing to attending both sessions in order to complete the course. This course is open to current students and deployment in student sport is expected, and has a limited number of spaces.

The cost of the course is normally £45, but thanks to the Basketball Scotland student member rebate, and the sportscotland Developing People grant, this course is available to students for only £15.

Theory session (online)

  • Date: Monday 11th April
  • Time: 6-9pm

Practical session

Click HERE to sign up for the refereeing course.

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Tuesday 23rd February 2021

Our Equality Steering group have recruited four new volunteers onto the group. Meet our Women’s, Ethnicity, LGBTQ+ and Disability Leads here!

The Equality Steering Group was established to advise and prompt the staff, committees and networks of SSS on all relevant aspects of equality and inclusion, with particular emphasis on ensuring adherence to a rolling Equality Action Plan for the organisation. Meet our four new volunteer leads!

Emmanuel Akerele, Ethnicity Lead

Meet Your LeadMy name is Emmanuel, after serving for two years as Robert Gordon University’s President for Education and Welfare, I am now their Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Advisor working within the HR Team. I love and play football and I am very passionate about equality, diversity, and representation within sports and wider society.

What attracted you to the role? I know that still racism exists, having experienced it myself and hearing of others’ experiences. It is imperative that everyone be anti-racist, and act against racism until it is completely eradicated. During my studies, I co-founded RGU’s Black Liberation Network which is a network of students coming together to take a stand against racism. I have also led several activist campaigns in the past such as Black History Month and hope to add more value to the subject through SSS.

Fun fact about yourself? I love football and I love scoring goals. I am a big boxing fan and my favourite sportspersons are Cristiano Ronaldo and Anthony Joshua.

 

Carolina O’Neill de Sousa e Sá, LGBTQ+ Lead

Meet Your Lead: I’m a Portuguese/American who grew up in Lisbon and has been living in Scotland since 2013. I’ve been an avid sportsperson for most of my life; taking every opportunity to get involved in sports teams, competitions, and outdoor activities. I studied at the University of Edinburgh – as an undergraduate in Sports Science and a Masters in Sport Policy and International Development.

Like most people, it was during my time at uni that I really came into my shell. One thing which definitely helped me was joining the Women’s Football Club. It was a place where I felt understood and like I could be entirely myself. It was during my Masters that I developed my passion for promoting equality and diversity through sport, particularly LGBTIQ inclusion. I now work as a Senior Project Officer for LEAP Sports (Scotland’s LGBTIQ sports charity) and Football v Homophobia Scotland.

What attracted you to the role? Student sport is a dynamic, fast-paced industry so I have always considered SSS to be an exciting organisation to be involved in. As for the role, this is a completely new role within SSS so it feels like a clean slate and something I can get creative with. LGBTIQ inclusion in sport is what I’m passionate about, and I’m really looking forward to working with students and sports clubs all over Scotland to make student sport a more welcoming space for all LGBTIQ people.

Fun fact about yourself? Not a fun fact, but my claim to fame is that I went to school – in Portugal – with Tottenham Hotspur’s Eric Dier. He was in the year above me, and I used to play football with him during our lunch breaks.

 

Laura Pilkington, Disability Lead

Meet Your Lead: My name is Laura Pilkington and I was born with a disability called Brittle Bones disease. I am a current student studying Physical Activity & Health at Edinburgh Napier University. I am a competitive para-swimmer and have been involved in swimming for the last 10 years. I am part of the Scottish Para-Swimming team and have Scottish para-swimming records in my classification. I am currently part of both Scottish Disability Sport and sportscotland’s Young People’s Sport Panel. I am also a swimming teacher covering shifts when I have some free time!

What attracted you to the role? I am passionate about inclusion within sport and know how much being involved within sport can have such a positive impact on your life; mentally, socially, and physically. However, I know that there are barriers that prevent those with disabilities taking part. I think raising awareness of these barriers within SSS is really important as well as finding out how best we can promote inclusion within disability sport. Sport is such a big part of student life and having a disability shouldn’t stop you from participating in this! I am really excited to work with the team and SDS to increase participation.

Fun fact about yourself? I can lick my elbow!

 

Georgia Moran, Women’s Lead

Meet Your Lead: Hello, I’m Georgia, SSS’ Women’s Lead. I studied Popular Music at Edinburgh Napier University, where I got quickly involved in the Students Association for four years before being elected as VP Sports & Societies for two years after I graduated. I am now the East Regional Development Officer at The RYA Scotland.

Being VP Sports & Socs lead me to so many amazing volunteering opportunities within SSS such as Elected Students Forum Chair, Competitions, Equality and Executive Committee Member and Chair/Founder of the Women in Sport Working Group. I have a passion for Equality and Inclusion in sport and I can’t wait to continue making a positive impact on the Student Sport Sector with SSS and the rest of the Equality Steering Group.

What attracted you to the role? I am excited about this role as it will provide more positive impacts to happen within the SSS membership. I have chaired the Women in Sport Group from 2019, now and I am so excited to keep pushing forward with the rest of the team. I have loved volunteering with SSS the past couple of years and I believe this group will have some amazing outcomes.

Fun fact about yourself? When my mum and I were visiting Nashville, Tennesse we were invited on stage to sing a couple of country songs in one of the most famous bars.

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Wednesday 16th December 2020

Inspiration, innovation and collaboration at every corner. These were some of the key themes that emerged from the SSS 2020 Festive Gathering. Over 70 members tuned into the virtual gathering and were treated to thought-provoking discussion, high-quality guest speakers and plenty of Festive Fun! Read all about it here!

In a change to tradition and a fitting tribute to 2020, the SSS Festive Gathering was delivered virtually this year with over 70  members across the tribe tuning in to hear from a panel of world-class athletes and leaders in sport.

Whilst the virtual gathering was a first of its kind, the longstanding tradition of participants wearing festive jumpers remained true – with some fantastic outfits on show throughout the afternoon. None more so than panelist Robyn Love (pictured below) in what is undoubtedly a candidate for the most festive photo of the year.

After an energising welcome from SSS Chair Pete Burgon, a brief review of the year gone by and finances approved – our attendees were met by two equally inspiring and thought-provoking discussions from our special guests.

First up, the Road to Tokyo panel, where SSS Head of Competitions Chris Purdie, was joined by three athletes whose experiences through student sport had helped shape their career path and their journey to next year’s Tokyo Olympics.

Neah Evans (Cycling), Megan Gaffney (Rugby) and Robyn Love (Wheelchair Basketball) discussed how their positive student sport experiences helped them reach where they are today. From balancing the workload of their studies with the pressure of performing in their sport and also trying to keep up a social life in the process, the panelists spoke honestly and fondly of their student days.

All three touched upon the huge sacrifices required to make it at the top level and acknowledged the vital support they received from their institutions and staff during their time at University. This support has been vital to them and many other young athletes looking to achieve their potential while also studying and preparing for their future.

The panel discussed the importance of resilience and “bounce-back ability” that the challenges of Coronavirus and lockdown caused before previewing what promises to be a jam-packed and exciting year of sport in 2021.

All three have very real and promising hopes of competing at the Tokyo Olympic Games and everyone at SSS wishes Megan, Robyn and Neah every success for 2021 and beyond.

Following this inspirational panel, the next section was packed full of ambition, innovation and collaboration at every corner: An Audience with Jan Paterson.

Jan is currently Managing Director Sport for Neom, delivering a bold new vision of future living. Neom is being designed as a global city for global citizens and Jan’s role is to engrain sport and physical activity in the lives of residents. In the future city, citizens will never be more than 8 minutes from a sports facility and physical activity will be an integral part of the curriculum.

Jan herself is a pioneer and her experiences in leadership roles were a great learning opportunity for our audience. She spoke of the importance of surrounding yourself with the right people, and the significance of bottom-up team building. We also heard some great stories of her times at the World University Games, Commonwealth Games and the Olympics.

To round off the day and in true 2020 style, the SSS Tribe were treated to a Zoom Quiz of the Year courtesy of Pete Burgon. This gave everyone a chance to show off their best Christmas jumpers, share some “funny” Christmas jokes and engage in some much needed festive cheer.

We would like to wish everyone a restful festive break and we look forward to seeing you all in 2021.

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Thursday 26th November 2020

In what has been a difficult year for everyone, we are focussing on the good work that has been done across the country amongst these uncertain, challenging times. We asked our members to share some of their “COVID Highlights” and moments they have been proud of this year. Here is what they came up with 💙

Online classes, revamped facilities, virtual welcome fayres, free gym memberships, mental health and wellbeing resources, virtual socials and hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of fundraising – it is safe to say that not even a global pandemic could stop our members, partners and sports clubs from making a difference. Here are a few “COVID Highlights”  from our student sport community.

University of Strathclyde | Community Spirit & Fundraising 

Strathclyde Sports Union has not allowed the current pandemic to affect our community spirit and fundraising efforts. This semester we have witnessed sport member’s most creative thinking and determination to continue to play sport. After restrictions stopped them from training, our rowing club swapped their boats for bikes and completed a ‘Time-lapse Challenge’ in aid of Scottish Association for Mental Health charity. This consisted of a 25-hour cycling endurance event in teams of four, with an extra power hour being added due to the clocks changing. The challenge was completed online via Strava, so it was the perfect event to do as a club while adhering to covid regulations.

The club completed laps within Glasgow Green working in various shift patterns throughout the night. The club’s community spirit ensured that participating members were supported throughout – people chipped in to act as mechanics (attending to seven different punctures throughout the event) and chefs, baking plenty of sausage rolls to keep everyone fuelled. On completion of the event, the club raised an impressive £1195 with the teams cycling over 300 kilometres throughout the 25 hours.

Whilst indoor sports club training was halted, our Netball club showed incredible innovation and looked for an outdoor fitness solution. The club took their nets and set up at Strathclyde’s outdoor sports facilities, Stepps Playing Fields, utilising an old blaze pitch (pictured above). They set up their posts and lines, on a largely derelict space, to allow members old and new to step foot on a court. These training sessions saw even the most senior club members make their first-ever trip to the University facility, brave the cold and get to enjoy throwing a ball around again.

As part of the StrathActive programme, the club is currently running online zoom fitness sessions, allowing those that are bound by travel restrictions an opportunity to participate. The club runs two sessions at Stepps per week, ditching their shorts and t-shirts for baselayers and joggers. The sessions may look a little different but the club have really demonstrated resilience and a determination to play. #PlayTheModifiedGame

University of Glasgow | Wellbeing Resource & Makeshift Facilities

As lockdown began in March and our facilities as we know them closed UofG Sport immediately jumped to action to create a wellbeing offering for all of our students, staff and community. In a matter of days, we created a webpage and filled it with a range of content for everyone to access for free. Initially, we started filming classes with our amazing active lifestyle team and uploaded them for people to continue exercising no matter where they were based. The page went from strength to strength and now includes a whole range of information resources including nutritional advice, bodyweight circuits, home-workouts and couch to 3K training plans, meditation tips and links to support resources.

✔️Since March our wellbeing resource recorded over 10,000 clicks.

Another highlight at GUSA has been the new intramural programme to invite students to get involved in sport for free without restrictions of memberships. This has massively improved the student experience at a time when most other social activities have been restricted. To support these activities we have adapted our facilities where ever we can – turning our outdoor rugby pitches into volleyball courts and using an outdoor marquee to host the boat club.

✔️In the last month, over 550 students attended our brand new drop-in Badminton and Table Tennis sessions to replace cancelled sports.

 

 

RGU | Digital Content & Free Gym Memberships

To support our community to remain active and take time to look after their physical and mental wellbeing during lockdown, RGU SPORT created Stay Safe Stay Home Stay Well. An initiative that saw us work with departments across the university to give the RGU community free access to the breadth of our services. Over the course of 23 weeks, we offered daily digital content ranging from live classes and stretching sessions to mindfulness visualisations, showing our commitment to keeping our community well during the challenging times being faced.

On campus we continued to place our student wellbeing at the top of our priorities. We believe the benefits of physical activity and using the facilities at RGU SPORT extend through all aspects of University life, whether that’s improving physical and mental wellbeing, meeting new people, increasing motivation or potentially enhancing academic performance.

Due to the challenging time students are facing, we believed the opportunity of free membership for the remainder of semester one for all students, regardless of individual physical activity background, would be a great way for students to get active at RGU and maintain an active lifestyle in order to support a healthy body and mind, without having to worry about the cost.

This opportunity has been made available to all students, whether or not they have used, or even visited the gym before. RGU SPORT is a safe space for students with a team who are always on hand to support students in their physical activity journey.

University of Dundee | Active Living Programme & MND Fundraising 

In response to COVID-19, the ISE Active Living Programme delivery immediately moved online in March, with nine classes delivered weekly, supported by online member resources and guidance. Regular member circulars with updates, guidance and reassurance ensured that online class attendance was very positive, with over 40 participants for some classes.  The feedback from programme members, who are in the highest risk COVID category, has been overwhelmingly positive:

“The classes have been the best thing about lockdown. Apart from maintaining some degree of fitness, the classes have added some much-needed structure to our days.”

The success of the programme delivery resulted in its manager, Hazel Ednie, being shortlisted for the Evening Telegraph’s Dundee Champion Awards 2020

On the sports clubs front, over the summer, the Dundee University Men’s Rugby Club worked together with club alumni to complete 1,000000 reps of different exercises in support of Motor Neurone Disease Association (MNDA).

After 30 days of hard effort, the club successfully completed 1,027,746 reps and smashed their fundraising target of £2k, with a total of £3894 raised. The individual efforts of one member – who completed 6012 reps on the final day – highlighted the individual and collective efforts of the club and its commendable focus on those in greatest need.

University of Aberdeen | Performance Swimming  & Space Management Volunteers

After three months of lockdown, the possibility of elite swimming returning emerged in June 2020.  Working in collaboration with Scottish Swimming, colleagues from the University and Aberdeen Sports Village seized the opportunity to host one of three regional ‘Performance’ locations (Aberdeen, Edinburgh & Stirling).  Plans were initiated to mobilise quickly, with colleagues returned from furlough, documentation produced, COVID training undertaken, and building compliance ensured.

By 20 July all the necessary checks were complete and ASV was able to facilitate the successful return of elite swimming and diving to ASV’s world-class aquatic facilities.  This ensured that performance sport was able to resume six weeks before other aquatic activity in ASV.

Although initially open to only a handful of elite athletes, the high-performance programme helped enable the wider return to sport.  Alongside ASV and University staff, club volunteers, Scottish Swimming officials, and the swimmers tested our health-related and building-specific processes and procedures, with all seen to be robust. This bred confidence ahead of the return of both public and club swimming which took place in September. This highly collaborative exercise was undertaken with exceptional dedication and attention from all partners.

The pandemic related contribution of the sports staff at Scottish universities hasn’t just been about facilitating the resumption of student sport and maintaining facilities.  In Aberdeen, the specialist Sport & Exercise Team mucked in to help their Estates colleagues complete a vital institutional assessment of teaching spaces.

With Aberdeen Sports Village closed and most of its staff furloughed, the University’s small team of specialist sports staff were also furloughed through May & June.  However, when an opportunity came up that required adaptable, resourceful, and physically active staff to volunteer to support the wider University effort to reopen the campus … the sport and exercise team jumped at the chance to come off furlough two weeks early.

Armed with hand-sanitiser, masks, tape-measures, common-sense, and a giant bunch of keys, the team set out on the exercise.  They visited, measured and analysed every seminar and lecture room on the University’s Old Aberdeen campus.  Each room was assessed for various social distancing scenarios; furniture was counted, logged and moved to lay the rooms out in the optimal format; and a data sheet for every room was compiled.  Ten days and 100 rooms later an exercise vital to the timetabling of face-to-face classes in the autumn was complete.

University of Edinburgh | Wellbeing Offering 

Given the unique challenges of this year, student wellbeing has been at the forefront of all of our activity so far. Sophie Weeden, our Wellbeing Officer, has worked on creating a dedicated wellbeing pack for all club welfare officers. A huge amount of planning went into various EUSU campaigns across Mental Health and Wellbeing Week(s) across November. Our #LetsTalk video highlighting men’s mental health had over 28,000 views across all platforms; we are running Mind Athletics and Growth mindset workshops; and have created a brand new social media campaign.

Alongside this, many of our sports clubs have supported Movember and a number of other mental health-related campaigns during this time, highlighting the importance of student wellbeing across our membership. Staying with sports clubs, during lockdown a number of our sports clubs took the opportunity to fundraise for different charities, including;

  • The Boat Club raised £2500 for Alzheimer’s Society by rowing for 24 hours straight on an erg – breaking the Lightweight Tandem world record in the process!
  • Ladies Rugby raised over £2000 for SAMH, My Name’5 Doddie, and Coppafeel – by virtually cycling/running/swimming from BT Murrayfield to each of the 6 Nation Stadiums – a total of 1,900 miles in just 7 days!
  • Our cricket club raised over £3000 for Age Scotland – running/cycling/swimming the length of their planned summer tour – from Edinburgh to Barbados, in total a whopping 7,800 kilometres in 12 days!

Heriot-Watt University | The Watt Welcome Fair

The Watt Welcome Fair was a celebration of all that is good about a University environment. A Sports Fair is not new as a concept but in the midst of a pandemic, Heriot-Watt held its largest-ever fair (based on the number of stakeholders) at Oriam, Scotland’s Sports Performance Centre, with attendees from across the Heriot-Watt Community. These included the Sports Union, Students Union and Chaplaincy to name but a few. With so much activity around induction and welcome being online, the fair gave new students a much needed physical event to attend.

The planning for the event ended up being military level with every single detail scrutinised to ensure everyone’s health and safety was looked after. All key partner groups were part of the planning and delivery with over 100 volunteers from both the Sports Union Ambassador and Student Union helpers teams supporting the event.

Such was the success of the event, discussions have already started on how the 2021 event, with or without covid, will be bigger and better next year.

Once our new students signed up – our sports clubs activity took off! Our main highlight of this season so far has been our Movember campaign.Our Sports Clubs are doing a phenomenal job raising money for Movember this year – taking part in fitness challenges, growing moustaches and hosting socials, raising over £20,000 so far! We never would have thought that within a week we would’ve surpassed last years target of £14, so we decided to revalue our target to £25k.

Our HW Movember Ambassador Stewart Morgan is leading the campaign. Movember is a campaign close to his heart and he has been instrumental in raising money and awareness for the cause. He spoke with Mark Beaumont SSS Honorary President Mark Beaumont earlier this month about the campaign, chatting all things student life, motivation and the importance of speaking up about mental health. Alongside Mark, Stewart also interviewed Tongan Rugby Player Nasi Manu to discuss their experiences with Testicular Cancer in the hopes to encourage others to regularly self-check and take action if they feel something is not quite right! Stewart also managed to link in with external companies such as First Bus to advertise our campaign and John Pye to host a Movember Auction which has turned out to be very successful and raise awareness for such a worthwhile cause.

As well as fundraising through growing a moustache or doing exercise our Clubs have held socials too – both our Volleyball Club and Basketball Club hosted a virtual Bingo and Movember Quiz Nights to add to our ever-increasing total.

Everyone at Heriot-Watt is hugely proud of all our sports clubs who have built such a great community spirit together during the pandemic.

QMU | Food Pantry & Inclusive Movember 

Despite the disruption to the regular season, QMU’s Sports & Societies have joined forces to raise awareness and funds for Movember 2020. But it hasn’t just been moustaches! Students from a diverse range of sports & societies such as Men’s Rugby, Netball, Hockey and Musical Theatre have all shared a common goal in challenging themselves to get active, completing ‘5K per day’ challenges throughout the month – raising the profile and awareness of men’s physical and mental health. In just twelve days they raced past last year’s fundraising total of £3,500, an immense achievement in the current circumstances. 

 

Also on campus, recognising the additional pressures that the pandemic has put on students finances in particular a group of QMU students worked with local partners Cyrenians and QMUSU to develop QMU’s first-ever food pantry! This student-led project aims to provide healthy, quality food and ingredients to students, in an affordable and accessible way. The first of its kind in Scotland, and possibly the UK, the Food Pantry has been a huge success in its opening months and has become a must-visit for students living on campus!

University of St. Andrews | Charity Work

In line with COVID restrictions, the St Andrews Hockey club has been able to provide regular hockey activity throughout the first semester of 2020/21  in a safe and competitive environment. We have had a record number of students join the club, consequently expanding our squads to 8 women’s teams and 3 men’s teams. We were also able to host pitch sessions for freshers in line with national and university guidelines, giving them the opportunity to meet new people in a safe environment. We are thrilled with the positive attitude everyone has brought to training this semester.

Since May the club has been actively raising money and supporting charities that are close to the club. In May, members ran over 4,500km and raised £4131.76 for SAMH as part of our ‘Run 4 SAMH’ challenge – a challenge which will be completed again next year and hopefully become a new tradition for years to come. Students participated in ‘Green Week’ by hosting a virtual veggie cooking competition, using reusable bottles and more sustainable transport decisions. The club is currently participating in Movember, encouraging the ‘run and chat challenge’ as well as some moustache growing. As of today, the club has have raised £4,138 and ‘moved’ 2345.15km.

We have loved hearing all your positive news stories over the last few weeks. All of this work only scratches the surface of the hard work and countless hours the student sport community have put in throughout this unusual year. We are so proud to be able to showcase this fantastic work from our members. If you have a good news story you would like to share with us please contact Communications Coordinator Gavin Rittoo on gavin@scottishstudentsport.com.

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Tuesday 17th November 2020

The next BiteSSSize Best Practice Webinar will focus on Volunteer Recruitment and Development. Find out more about our expert panel and sign-up now!

Volunteering is vital to the student sport community in Scotland. At SSS we are always keen to celebrate best practice, showcase opportunities and highlight the impact of students. This webinar will look closely at the process and structures required to effectively integrate volunteers and why it’s important to get it right from the start.

The panel has vast experience in both recruiting and developing volunteers.  Drawing on their own personal experiences, the panel will offer support and advice for delivering a more developmental approach to volunteers.

The Panel:

Caitlin Kelly was Sports President at the University of Glasgow in 2015/16 and has made a career out of volunteering. Caitlins experience includes Commonwealth Games, Athletics European Championships and the Special Olympics. Caitlin now works as a Volunteer Coordinator for the upcoming UEFA Euro 2021 tournament.

Jamie Taylor is the Sports Development Manager at the University of Glasgow and like Caitlin, he is also a volunteer at UEFA Euro 2021. Jamie works closely with sports clubs and student volunteers at GUSA, and previously sat on the SSS Development Committee.

Jess Barrows is the Competitions Coordinator at SSS and is involved in recruiting volunteers as sports Chairs as well as for events and roles in development groups. Jess is also a Director on the board of Scottish Club Sport.

This webinar will take place on Tuesday 24th November, 4-5pm.

Click here to sign up to attend.

Nominations are being accepted for SSS Volunteer of the Semester, click here for more information.

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Friday 30th October 2020

The SSS Leadership Programme restarted in style with record numbers of aspiring student leaders signing up and taking their first steps in the new, re-vamped programme! Read the full story here.

Now into its fourth consecutive year, the SSS Leadership Programme is an offering open to all SSS member institutions. This year, the programme provides a virtual platform for students to enhance their personal development, with a particular emphasis on enhancing leadership and employability skills. The full series is delivered by our West Regional Development Coordinator – Megan Richardson – who delivers the content via two blocks of webinars.

This year, 34 students from 11 Universities and Colleges across Scotland have signed up to the programme. The launch event took place on Thursday 22nd October where we were joined by the effervescent Guy Richardson – CEO and founder of Eiger Performance – who led yet another engaging session on ‘Leadership with Impact’.

The programme will be delivered virtually over Zoom between now and March through 10 weeks of Mastermind calls focussing on various aspect of leadership, employability and tailored conversation to encourage the leaders to network and learn from one another.

It’s an extremely exciting time for yet another thriving cohort of aspiring young leaders as they begin their journey to grow and develop on their own personal journey throughout the 20-21 academic year. Watch this space and stay tuned for this year’s group to take the Sports Development world by storm!

Below is a list of SSS member institutions represented on this years Leadership Programme;

  • Fife College
  • Heriot-Watt University
  • Moray College
  • University of Aberdeen
  • University of Edinburgh
  • University of Glasgow
  • University of St Andrew
  • University of Stirling
  • University of Strathclyde
  • University of the Highlands and Islands

For more details contact Megan Richardson: megan@scottishstudentsport.com.

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Thursday 23rd July 2020

We are delighted to announce that Michael Rimicans has been awarded the Dr Rob MacPherson award for his exceptional commitment to volunteering during his time as Scottish Student Cross Country Chair. Read more about the great work Michael has done here!

Scottish Student Sport are delighted to announce that Michael Rimicans (Scottish Student Cross Country Chair) has been awarded the Dr. Rob MacPherson Award for his outstanding contribution to volunteering with Scottish Student Sport.

Volunteering is vital aspect to the work of Scottish Student Sport, allowing us to reach and support ever greater numbers of students with opportunities across physical activity and sport. We value our volunteers extremely highly and love to recognise their brilliance and impact whenever we can.

The Rob MacPherson Volunteering award was inaugurated in 2016 following the death of Dr. Robin (Rob) Macpherson. No individual in our history has better embodied the positive culture of volunteering than Rob himself.  He was a tireless, wise and extremely capable figure who dedicated much of his spare time to student golf. In particular, he strove to develop opportunities for students and encouraged participation and competition, taking up positions of responsibility across Scotland, the UK and Europe.

His impact is still felt keenly by all those who had the pleasure of working with him, and his contributions to the game of golf remain very much alive to this day. In recognition of his outstanding contributions, Rob became an Honorary Life Vice President of SSS in 2013 and he will forever remain part of the story – and history – of student sport.

This award differs slightly from the rest of our awards – there are no nominations, instead, the winner is selected by the SSS staff team as opposed to the Executive Committee. Check out the rest of our award winners here.

Michael Rimicans joins the growing list of worthy winners of this award including Paul McPate (University of Dundee), Emma Borthwick (Cycling Chair), Chris Gray (Rifle Chair), Karen Mackellar (Netball Chair) and Emily Short (Trampoline Chair).

Michael’s impact on the student sporting landscape is clear for all to see, particularly in the development of the Cross Country programme, during his time as SSS Cross Country Chair Michael had a number of significant wins.

With Michael’s guidance and promotion, he grew the 2019/20 Scottish Student Cross Country Championships to its largest participation numbers on our record – 220 students took to the course at Camperdown Country Park, Dundee back in November 2019 (pictured below).

Michael introduced the first-ever Scottish Student Half Marathon Championships this year, engaging with a number of external partners and tying down a suitable date amidst an already hectic student cross country calendar. The event was a great success on the day and hopefully, the first of many SS Half Marathon Championships!

Off the track, Michael had an equally positive impact. He greatly improved online communications within the Scottish Student Cross Country network, creating and managing a Facebook group with 157 members and setting up a Strava group (79 members) in response to the nationwide lockdown – ensuring students stayed active and engaged whilst at home.

Most impressively, Michael completed a consultation with the student clubs regarding the SS Cross Country Championship distances. Michael listened and acted on student feedback – a request for equal distances at races for both men and women – taking up the issue with Scottish Athletics to evaluate potential options. Michael’s proposal was successful and it was concluded that both genders will run equal distances at next seasons SS Cross Country Championships and beyond! Read the full report here!

The above examples are a fine testament to Michael’s work ethic, can-do attitude and opitomise the SSS values of inclusivity and responsiveness. Well done Michale on a fantastic year as Scottish Student Cross Country Chair – your time in the role will leave a lasting impact on the student cross country programme!

 

 

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Monday 25th May 2020

Carstairs, President of QMU’s Sapphires Cheerleading Club, has been awarded this past term’s Volunteer of the Semester for her continuous dedication to volunteering within student sport during the early months of 2020.

This past semester, Sarah and the Sapphires held the QMU’s Cheer Showcase – a Cheer and Dance competition attended by over 400 students from across Scotland. The club raised over £3000, of which £300 was donated to the local Dalkeith Men’s Shed, a community outreach programme promoting positive mental health and wellbeing for men of all ages. Sarah continued to attend meetings throughout the semester, forging a long-term partnership with the charity, going far beyond a one-off donation.

In addition, Sarah initiated a change to her club’s annual social event based on the popular TV show, Take Me Out, to promote an inclusive environment for all of those taking part by adding two LGBT+ rounds for the first time in the club’s history.

When asked about her experience volunteering, Sarah stated: “I have had the most amazing time being a member of the Queen Margaret University Cheerleading Squad. The experience I had as a part of this team made my time at university unforgettable. My positions within the team allowed me to increase opportunities for students within the club, which gained more recognition for the sport and enhanced the university experience for others.

On behalf of the SSStribe, we would like to say congratulations to Sarah for all her efforts to promote inclusion and continue to build strong community ties in her area – keep up the great work!

Volunteer of Semester – 2020/2021

Does your institution have a committed student volunteer just like Sarah? Why not submit their details for our next Volunteer of the Semester award?

The winning student will receive a £50 Amazon voucher as well as have a profile piece published by Scottish Student Sport.

For more information on the upcoming award for the 2020 – 2021 academic year can be found here.

For more information or if you have any general enquiries, please contact Development and Competitions Assistant, Leah Davidson.

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Wednesday 29th April 2020

The numbers are in and SSS are excited to announce a 12% growth in club membership numbers in the 2019/20 academic year. Check out the sport-specific breakdown and highlights here!

Scottish Student Sport are delighted to report that across Scotland, the collective total club membership numbers has reached just under 40,000.  Here are some of the facts behind the numbers…

  • Across 571 student sports clubs there are 39,947 individuals reported to be taking part in club activity. This healthy annual growth of 12% is representative of the hard work put in by the staff, volunteers and students at each institution working hard to ensure good quality, fun and friendly sport and physical activity are available on campus.
  • We are delighted to see a huge increase in the reported involvement of students with a disability with that number reaching a total of 1,330 students.
  • The sex balance reported is 45% male, 48% female and 6% unknown.
  • There is slight movement in the top 10 sports per membership numbers with Netball moving up and Tennis moving down. Each sport in the top 10, with the exception of mountaineering, have all increased in size since the 2018/19 reporting.

Please see below a snapshot of the data capture. If you have any questions regarding the data then please email Development & Competitions Assistant Leah Davidson.

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